Media: Boxes and Arrows takes on Guidelines

"Making guidelines part of the team" by Tanya Rabourn is a useful look at the status that should be given guideliness and the fuss that has blown up around them through misapplication. She draws on sources such as IBM and Microsoft on one hand and academics and commentators on the other.

'When knowledge is captured in the form of a guideline, it's known as a prescriptive theory. Prescriptive theories suggest actions to take that will lead to desired results. Guidelines aren't rules to be enforced. They don't eliminate creativity and innovation from the design process. Instead guidelines are a vital part of our decision strategy during the design process.'

She suggests we consider the following when assessing the applicability of a guideline:

1) Design can never be static over time.

2) The phrase "interactive media" includes a plural noun.

Elegantly, she doesn't offer guidelines, just a good discussion of key points to consider. The work, appropriately enough, is being left for us to do.

Associated Link: Boxes and Arrows: Making guidelines part of the team

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